Draw implement, particularly a ski lift device, for transportation of individuals



March 7, 1967 3,307,494

.DRAW IMPLEMENT, PARTICULARLY A $141 LIFT DEVICE, FOR

E. SAMITZ TRANSPORTATION OF INDIVIDUALS Filed Nov. 10, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ERWIN SAMITZ A TTOHN Y5 March 7, 1967 E. SAMITZ 3,307,494

, DRAW IMPLEMENT, PARTICULARLY A SKI LIFT DEVICE, FOR

TRANSPORTATION OF INDIVIDUALS Filed Nov. 10, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ERWIN SAMITZ FIG. 4 BY Z Q gay/W ATTORNEY S March 7, 1967 EASAMITZ 3,307,494

DRAW IMPLEMENT, PARTICULARLY A SKI LIFT DEVICE, FOR

TRANSPORTATION OF INDIVIDUALS Filed Nov. 10, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR 6 ERWIN SAMITZ BY ((2 Day/ ATTORNEYS United States Patent many, a German company Filed Nov. 10, 1964, Ser. No. 410,162 Claims priority, application Germany, Nov. 11, 1963,

3 Claims. (Ci. 104-173) This invention relates to a draw or pulling implement, especially a ski lift device, for the transportation of individuals. With the increasing popularity of skiing and related winter sports, there has developed a need for a lift device which can be used in areas where more elaborate commercial lifts are not available, and which can be easily transported from place to place and put into operation at the new location. The instant invention, although not necessarily limited to such uses, finds its greatest utility in such areas of use.

It is a general object of this invention to provide such a device or implement which can be transported easily from one place to another, and which can be put into operation quickly at the new location. The structure of the device is such that it can be transported, for instance, in the luggage compartment of a passenger car.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a device or implement which propels itself uphill by winding an anchored cable onto a cable drum carried by the device, the cable drum being driven by an engine or motor through a selectively engageable connection which is controlled by the persons being transported by the device.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a device or implement according to the preceding paragraph and which further includes releasable locking means for preventing unintentional unwinding of the cable from the cable drum when the drive connection between the motor and the cable drum is released.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide a device according to the preceding paragraph and which further incorporates an automatic braking device. responsive to the speed of rotation of the cable drum so as to control the downhill speed of the device when the locking means has been released and the device is moving downhill under force of gravity.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the ensuing description of an exemplary embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction with the attached drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing the general structure and manner of use of a device according to the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view of an exemplary lock for the cable drum and an exemplary automatic brake for controlling the rotational speed of the cable drum.

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the main shaft shown in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view of the locking device shown in FIGURE 2, but showing the locking pawl in unlocked or released position.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view of an exemplary form of releasable coupling between the engine shaft and the pulley shaft,

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view, partially schematic, of a portion of the grasping handle showing the operating levers for the flexible cables.

Referring first to FIGURE 1 of the drawings, on a frame-like pedestal. 1 an internal combustion engine 2 of a known kind is attached. The frame-like pedestal 1 is equipped with runners 11 so as to permit easy sliding 3,307,494 Patented Mar. 7, 1967 movement over a snow surface. The runners 11 are up-turned at each of their ends so as to permit easy movement of the device in either forward or reverse direction. Suitably rotatably mounted on the frame-like pedestal is a horizontally disposed cable drum 3 to which is firmly connected a V-belt pulley 3a. Pulley 3a is connected through intermediate idler pulley 4 to a further V-belt pulley 5a. Idler pulley 4 preferably, but not necessarily, is adjustably mounted so as to provide for tightening or loosening of the V-belts. Pulley 5a is rigily mounted on a shaft 5 which is coupled to the crank shaft (not shown in FIG. 1) of the internal combustion engine 2 by a disengageable coupling, which coupling can be any convenient form of simple clutch.

A handle assembly 6 for individuals is swivelly mounted at 1a to the frame-like pedestal. A flexible tube 7 extends along the handle assembly 6 and incorporates flexible operating cables of a type well known in the art. These operating cables are connected at one end to operating handles on or in the vicinity of the grasping member of the handle assembly 6, and at their other end the operating cables are connected respectively to the gas lever of the internal combustion engine 2 and to the control member for the disengageable coupling on the shaft 5. A suitable arrangement will be described in more detail in connection with FIGS. 5 and 6. Such control arrangements are generally well known in the art, and it will be understood that the arrangement shown in the drawing is exemplary only.

One end of a hauling cable 8 is attached to the cable drum 3 in any convenient manner, and the other end is adapted to be anchored at a remote uphill point 9. The uphill end of cable 8 can be attached directly to a tree or the like, or altenatively any convenient form of anchor can be attached to the uphill end of the cable.

In order to prevent inadvertent reversal of the cable drum a ratchet mechanism is provided to cooperate in a known manner with a ratchet wheel atached to the cable drum. Exemplary details of such a mechanism are shown in FIGURE 2. Referring to FIGURE 2, the cable drum is indicated generally at 3, and this drum is mounted for rotation with a shaft 13, which is in turn journalled in a journal 14 carried by the rotor support which is shown schematically at 15. A rachet wheel 17 of a known type is mounted for rotation with cable drum 3 inside a protective housing 16. A stationary pawl support member 21 is attached to journal 14 or to the rigid support member 15, and has a pawl member 18 mounted thereon for pivotal movement about an axis 19 into and out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 17. A ratchet control shaft 10a passes through the center of rotary shaft 13 and has a projecting member 23 extending radially outwardly through an opening 22 in the shaft 13. A cam member 24 is mounted on shaft 13 for longitudinal sliding movement relative to shaft 13 and for rotation therewith. Projecting member 23 engages a corresponding formation in cam member 24 so as to permit the cam member to be moved longitudinally by moving shaft 10a. A cam follower in the form of a rotary wheel or similar member 20 extends from pawl member 18 to cooperate with the cam member 24. Since cam member 24 is constantly rotating in the particular embodiment shown in FIGURE 2 the use of a rotary wheel or similar member reduces wear, but any convenient alternative arrangement can be used. As will be clear from FIGURES 2 and 4, by shifting shaft 10a to the left the cam 24 serves to disengage pawl member 18 from ratchet wheel 17, thus permitting the cable drum to rotate freely in either direction.

In order to control the downhill speed of the device during unwinding movement of the cable drum, a centrifugally actuated brake can be incorporated in the device to be actuated at predetermined rotational speeds of the cable drum. An exemplary braking arrangement is shown in FIGURE 2 of the drawings. Referring to FIGURE '2, pulley 3a is mounted for rotation with shaft 13. A stationary brake shoe member 25is connected to journal 14 or to support member 15 and carries a brake lining member 26. A corresponding brake lining member 27 is mounted on a hub of pulley member 3a so as to rotate with pulley 3a and so as to be longitudinally movable relative to the pulley hub. A cam member 29 is also mounted on the pulley hub to rotate therewith and to move longitudinally thereof. A plurality of metal balls 28 are disposed inside pulley 3a as shown, and these metal balls bear against the cam surface of cam member 29. These metal balls rotate with pulley 3a and move outwardly under varying degrees of centrifugal force depending upon the rotational speed of the pulley. If the rotational speed of the pulley, and consequently of the cable drum, exceeds a predetermined rate, the balls 28 move outwardly under centrifugal force and urge earn member 29 and brake member 27 to the left as viewed in FIGURE 2, thus urging brake member 27 into frictional braking engagement with stationary brake lining member 26 to provide a braking action opposing the rotation of the cable drum 3.

A hood or cover 12 (shown in broken lines) is mounted over the entire assembly, and openings 12a, 12b and 120 are provided in the cover 12 for the cable, the shifting lever 10, and the towing handle 6.

If desired, the device can be equipped with an additional back run safety mechanism so as to provide additional operation-a1 safety for the transportation of passengers. This additional safety mechanism may consist, for example, of a drag member equipped with claws or the like, the drag member being pivotally mounted at the rear end of the runners 11 and having the claws or the like inclined rearwardly from its lower surface so as to dig into the snow upon attempted rearward movement, thus stopping the vehicle. The rearward inclination of the claw members would permit them to slide over the surface of the snow during forward movement and to automatically dig into the snow upon reverse movement. Suitable latches would be provided to hold the drag member in upwardly folded position during downhill travel of the device.

The operation of the device will be apparent from the foregoing description. The device is first placed in position along the desired draw path, and the cable 8 is unwound from the cable drum and anchored at 9 in any convenient manner. The engine 2 is then started, the

. drive connection to shaft is engaged, and the cable drum 3 is driven so as to pull the device and the individual user up the draw path by virtue of the winding of the cable 8 onto the cable drum 3. The speed of movement can be regulated by the person operating the device by virtue of the fuel control shaft inside tubular member 7. Upon arriving at the desired disenmbarkation point, the drive coupling is disengaged so that the device will come to a stop. It will be held in this position by the ratchet and pawl locking mechanism. The shifting lever a is then shifted to the left so as to disengage the ratchet and pawl lock, and the device will now move downhill while unwinding the cable 8. At the same time the internal conibustion engine 2 may remain in operation without causing trouble, because the driving coupling has been disengaged so that only the cable drum 3 and the various pulleys will rotate during the downhill passage. If the downhill speed of the device should exceed the predetermined maximum, the centrifugally actuated brake will automatically impose a braking force to the rotation of the cable drum, thus slowing the device. When the device reaches its downhill starting point, it can be stopped by shifting the shaft 10a or by dropping the optional drag member which was described previously. The device is then ready for a further uphill trip. It should be noted that the device can be stopped at its downhill starting point by one of the skiers who previously was pulled uphill by the device since the downhill speed of movement of the device can be controlled so as to have it reach the starting point at a desired time.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiment of the invention described and illustrated herein is subject to various modifications without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Thus the rachet and pawl locking mechanism and the centrifugal brake mechanism can take any convenient form, and the particular form of these elements does not constitute an essential feature of the instant invention. Ratchet and pawl mechanisms and centrifugal brake mechanisms in themselves are well known in the art, and it is contemplated that any convenient form may be used. Centrifugal brake devices are shown, for instance, in United States Patent Numbers 2,937,853 of May 24, 1960, 2,544,729 of March 13, 1951, 2,518,934 of August 15, 1950, and 2,122,315 of June 28, 1938. Numerous op.- tional forms of ratchet and pawl locking mechanisms will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. If conditions should permit, naturally battery powered electric motors could be used for operating the cable drum.

In FIGURE 5 is shown an exemplary releasable coupling between the crank shaft 31 of the engine 2 and the shaft 5 connected with the pulley 5a. The shafts 5 and 31 are rotatably mounted in a stationary part 32. A coupling member 34 is rotatably connected to the shaft 5, but axially movable with respect to said shaft. The front ends of said members 31 and 34 are provided with engaging teeth 31a and 34a, whereby the engagement of said shafts can be secured by means of a spring 33 located between a collar on the member 34 and a collar on the shaft 5.

As shown in FIGURE 6 the flexible operating cables 7a and 7b within the flexible tube 7 are connected with operating levers 30a and 30b. The levers are secured in each of their positions by means of known and therefore not shown ratchet means. If the operating lever 30a is moved in the direction A, the flexible operating cable 7a moves also in direction A and the coupling between said shafts 5 and 31 is established. If the operating lever 30a moves in the opposite direction, then the end 7a urges the member 34 to move to the right as viewed in FIG. 5 and the coupling between said shafts is released.

The operating cable 7b with lever 30b is coupled with the gas lever of the engine 2.

It should be understood that the embodiment de scribed and illustrated herein is exemplary of the invention rather than limiting, and that the invention is to be limited only by the subjoined claims as interpreted in the light of the foregoing specification. Having thus fully described an embodiment of my invention in themanner required by the patent statutes, I claim:

1. A ski-lift device comprising: a frame mounted on snow runners, said snow runners being curved at each of their ends so as to permit sliding movement of said runners on a snow surface in either forward or reverse direction; a cable drum rotatably mounted on said frame; a cable member having one of its ends connected to said cable drum so as to effect winding or unwinding of the cable as the drum rotates; motor means mounted on said frame; means releasably connecting said motor means to said cable drum to rotate said cable drum in one direction; handle means carried by said frame to provide a grasping surface for skiers to use in being transported uphill by the device; and control means permitting engagement or release of said connecting means so as to have said motor means rotate said cable drum or to permit said cable drum to rotate free of said motor means; whereby the free end of said cable can be anchored at an uphill point, and the device will pull skiers uphill as said motor means rotates said drum and winds said cable thereon, and the device will move downhill by unwinding said cable under force of gravity while said motor means is disconnected from said cable drum.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further comprisingrele-asable lock means for preventing rotation of said cable drum in the unwinding direction, and means for selectively releasing said lock means.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 further comprising brake means for controlling the rotational speed of said cable drum during unwinding, and centrifugal governor means mounted for rotation with said cable drum for actuating said brake means at predetermined rotational speeds during unwinding rotation of the drum so as to control the downhill movement of the device. 1

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Grothe 242-95 Moore 104173 Swenson 104178 X Howard 1156.1

MacMillin l88--187 10 ARTHUR L. LA POINT, Primary Examiner.

D. F. WORTH, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A SKI-LIFT DEVICE COMPRISING: A FRAME MOUNTED ON SNOW RUNNERS, SAID SNOW RUNNERS BEING CURVED AT EACH OF THEIR ENDS SO AS TO PERMIT SLIDING MOVEMENT OF SAID RUNNERS ON A SNOW SURFACE IN EITHER FORWARD OR REVERSE DIRECTION; A CABLE DRUM ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME; A CABLE MEMBER HAVING ONE OF ITS ENDS CONNECTED TO SAID CABLE DRUM SO AS TO EFFECT WINDING OR UNWINDING OF THE CABLE AS THE DRUM ROTATES; MOTOR MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME; MEANS RELEASABLY CONNECTING SAID MOTOR MEANS TO SAID CABLE DRUM TO ROTATE SAID CABLE IN ONE DIRECTION; HANDLE MEANS CARRIED BY SAID FRAME TO PROVIDE A GRASPING SURFACE FOR SKIERS TO USE IN BEING TRANSPORTED UPHILL BY THE DEVICE; AND CONTROL MEANS PERMITTING ENGAGEMENT OR RELEASE OF SAID CONNECTING MEANS SO AS TO HAVE SAID MOTOR MEANS ROTATE SAID CABLE DRUM OR TO PERMIT 